


The Silent Forest

by Salzburger



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-09
Updated: 2012-12-09
Packaged: 2017-11-20 17:36:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,047
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/587978
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Salzburger/pseuds/Salzburger
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Events occur after the episode Queen Of Hearts. Mulan and Aurora set off immediately on their journey to find Prince Phillip's soul, after helping Emma and Snow return to their world, and they've set up camp for the night. For a moment, let's all just pretend they aren't en route to reviving Prince Phillip.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Silent Forest

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: So the Sleeping Warrior ship has set sail for real now, with that epic heart scene. And the show's leaving us shippers with our hearts in our mouths with a long break! I had to write this ficlet to keep myself sane in the meantime.

THE nights have grown perceptibly colder.

At first, Aurora put up with the dip in temperatures as well as she could, wrapping her thin dress and blanket tightly around herself before she went to sleep. Or she tried to, anyway. The nightmares she suffered as a result of the Sleeping Curse made every night a trial. It helped that Mulan always kept the camp fire stoked - she slept little and kept a constant vigil around their campsite, so she stayed busy by tending to the fire.

One night, no matter how hard she tried, Aurora couldn't sleep in peace. It was so cold, even though there was no snow yet, that her breath condensed in the air. She curled up in the bed roll but it was no good.

She heard Mulan's footsteps outside the tent. Mulan has a light tread for someone decked out in all that armour and weaponry, but Aurora is familiar with how quick she is on her feet during the many battles the fighter had to engage in to defend Aurora. Her heart contracted a little, as it has been wont to do lately, and Aurora shifted in her bed.

"Can't sleep?" Mulan asked softly, peering into the tent.

"It's a little cold," Aurora replied and sat up. Her hair was mussed up from lying on the bed roll. She shook her head and pulled her hair back from her face.

Mulan looked at Aurora, her dark eyes giving away nothing in the dimness of the tent. She glanced away for a moment, out over the campsite. As if satisfied by the security of the surroundings, she returned her gaze to Aurora. "Mind if I join you? I'm taking a quick break."

Aurora nodded and made room for her companion. She laid back down in her roll and turned to watch Mulan get ready for bed.

The warrior unbuckled her belt and unattached her sheathed sword to lay it down reverently beside her (Aurora had asked her before why she did that, and got the reply: "The sword is your best friend on and off the battlefield. You treat it right, and it'll take care of you as well."). She loosened her body armour, only a little ("Because you never know when your enemy will strike - they always try to catch you when your guard is down."), and - this was Aurora's favourite part, because it made Mulan look so different - she removed the clasps holding her hair up in a tight bun, loosening her hair so that it fell over her shoulders in curled waves ("It gives me a headache when I try to sleep on my bun.").

The ritual over, Mulan crawled into her bed roll. Throughout the entire process, she kept her eyes down, not looking at Aurora. Finally tucked in, she turned towards the princess and smiled hesitantly. They were about an inch apart.

Mulan was quiet for a minute, and Aurora thought she had fallen asleep. But she spoke up: "Does your heart still bother you?"

"Oh, no, no. I'm fine, I think."

"Right. Because, as I said before, I had no experience returning removed hearts to their rightful owners. I might have put the heart in upside down or the wrong way in," Mulan said fretfully. "If you experience any discomfort you must let me know right away. I'm sure there's someone out here who knows about heart extraction… Things like that."

Aurora grinned. "I'm fine, Mulan. Really. It's just that it feels strange now, not in a bad way, but different."

"What feels strange?"

"My heart. I'm still disturbed that I never realised it was missing till Cora revealed how she was manipulating me. Now I can't help but be aware of it all the time. How it beats slowly when I'm resting, and how it picks up sometimes. I suppose I'm just so sensitised now that I can't help but be aware of it inside me."

"I think hearts are supposed to do that," Mulan said uncertainly. "As long as it doesn't hurt, or stop beating, or fall out again in case it wasn't hooked on properly or something. Your heart didn't have a buckle on it, I checked, so I can't be sure if it's secure."

"Stop worrying," Aurora laughed. She added softly, "I felt it when you put it back in me."

"What was it like?" Mulan moved in her bed roll so she could face Aurora, curious.

Aurora closed her eyes for a second, recalling the moment.

"I felt your hand over my heart. I knew when you came back that you had it, because I could feel you holding onto a part of me. The feeling grew stronger when you came up to me. You were cradling my heart in both your hands. I felt safe."

Mulan smiled, and said: "I was afraid that if I held it too tightly I would break it and you'll die. My hands were sweating in my gloves."

Aurora nodded. "I could feel your hand shaking when you pressed my heart against my chest. I wasn't sure if it would work, but your hand, and my heart, were suddenly both inside my chest. I thought I couldn't breathe. Then I felt your hand leave my body and my heart held on, and I could breathe again."

"To tell you the truth, I was holding my breath throughout the whole process too," Mulan said.

Aurora replied: "You don't have to worry, Mulan. If I ever lose my heart, you'll get it back."

Mulan snorted. "Please do hold on to it, though? The first time was harrowing enough."

They looked at each other silently, close enough to be able to sense the other's gaze on each other. Aurora felt, as she did that day when Mulan placed her heart back in her chest, that familiar clench deep inside. An ache that discomforted her now every time she looked at her travelling companion. 

In the process of losing her heart, and having it back again, Aurora felt changed. She knew, deep in her bones, that the feeling was not a bad one - different doesn't mean bad after all. Given time, she was bound to figure it out eventually, she decided.

"How do you feel now?" Mulan asked.

"Warmer."


End file.
